Man abducted as child reunited with parents after 32 years

BEIJING AFP May19, 2020 -   A Chinese man kidnapped as a toddler 32-years-ago has been reunited with his biological parents, after police used facial recognition technology to help track him down.   

Mao Yin was just two when he was snatched outside a hotel in Xi’an in central Shaanxi province in 1988 and sold to a childless couple in neighbouring Sichuan province who raised him as their own son, Xi’an’s public security bureau said in a statement.   

Police “aged” one of Mao’s childhood photos, according to state broadcaster CCTV, and used the model to scan the national database and find close matches.   

They were acting on a tipoff that a person in a certain area of Sichuan had bought a child in the late 80’s.   

On Monday, the now 34-year-old had a tearful reunion with his birth parents who had never given up the search for their missing boy.